Sales have dropped by nearly 80% since the strike began.
A Canada Post strike is taking a major toll on small businesses, including CanadianDice.ca, a London-based retailer specializing in dice for tabletop games like Dungeons & Dragons and Pathfinder.
Owner Ryan Hunter says his sales have dropped by nearly 80% since the strike began. His company produces and sells around 10,000 dice sets annually, both directly to customers and through custom orders for projects such as Kickstarter campaigns.
While some orders are picked up locally or sold in select stores, nearly 90% of CanadianDice.ca’s business depends on the mail.
Most products sell for $10–$20, with shipping usually kept affordable through Canada Post letter mail, averaging about $2.50. With that option off the table, Hunter has turned to third-party alternatives such as Chit Chats, which costs about $7 per package. Shipping through major couriers like FedEx or Purolator can cost at least $20, making it unreasonable for a $10 order.
The strike has also shut down Hunter’s popular monthly Patreon subscription service, which sends mystery dice sets to hundreds of customers. Without low-cost letter mail, the program is temporarily on hold.
Hunter says customers have been understanding, but the disruption highlights how fragile small online businesses can be when shipping services are interrupted. With letter mail off the table, Hunter says higher courier costs make his dice unaffordable for most customers. “It’s a tough situation, and it really hurts small businesses,” he said. “Especially heading into the holiday season, when sales usually rise 40 to 50 percent.”
